Hey, hive! I’m wrapping up my series of favorite books by age…I shared my favorite board books  and my favorite books for toddlers and in this post, I’ll be sharing some of my favorite books for preschoolers!

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1. I love Duck! Rabbit! because it encourages creativity and thinking (and looking) out of the box. Preschoolers will enjoy hearing the debate between the two unseen speakers and will not be able to resist joining in on the discussion themselves! It’s also a great book to read before cloud watching!

2. My Friend is Sad is one of many books in the Elephant and Piggie series by who else? Mo Willems! This is my favorite series for young children — my Kindergartners adore these books (and Lil’ CB, too!) and cheer whenever I bring one out. The books are hilarious for children and grown-ups alike and teach simple lessons on friendship. The stories are wonderful for reading aloud and they teach so much about reading with expression. The books are all written in Gerald and Piggie’s voices, with speech bubbles telling the entire story. One of my favorite things to do with students who are reading is to read the story like a play with one of us reading Gerald’s part and the other reading Piggie’s. I once had a student invite me to his house to watch him and his big sister put on a set of short plays based on these books! One of my favorite teaching moments ever.

3. Todd Parr is such a fun author and his kooky illustrations draw in young readers. I love many of his books (The I Love You Book is another favorite), but It’s Okay to Be Different is not only engaging and silly, but can also be used to start conversations about differences (and the fact that they’re okay!). Preschoolers are bound to notice differences in their friends and others around them, and this book introduces the subject in an easy, non-threatening way without getting too heavy.

4. Oh, mommas. You are going to have such a text-to-self connection with this book! It’s a sweet story of a relationship between a mother and her doesn’t-mean-to-be-but-is-pesky preschool aged child. Mem Fox manages to make Harriet You’ll Drive Me Wild equally funny and heartwarming!

5. Emily Gravett is a popular author in Great Britain and her books are gaining popularity here in the States. Dogs is beautiful illustrated and the rhyming descriptive words are easy for a preschooler to hang on to and predict. The surprise at the end is a great way to start a conversation about inferencing and unexpected endings.

6. Ezra Jack Keats’ most famous book is The Snowy Day. Peter’s Chair is another of Peter’s adventures and is easy for preschoolers to relate to, especially those with younger siblings. The book is older, so it sounds and feels a little older, but I find it adds to the charm.

7. A Sick Day for Amos McGee is a recent Caldecott winner and rightfully so. The pencil and woodblock illustrations are simply beautiful and the story is so sweet and timeless. Even though it was published only 2 years ago, it reads like a classic that could have been a book from your own childhood. Preschoolers will love Amos and the animals that love him.

8. A Visitor for Bear is the first book about Bear and Mouse. It is hilariously written and the contrasting personalities of Bear and Mouse are belly-laugh inducing. (And make for a nice way to talk about making predictions based on characters!) Keep in mind, you have to be quite dramatic when reading Bear’s lines and I like to think that Mouse has a quiet British voice.

9. I dare you to get through Bark, George without giggling with your preschooler! It’s extremely silly and perfect for that literal and wacky sense of humor that preschoolers often have.

10. Preschoolers have growing imaginations and Not a Box celebrates that imagination and the joys and wonders of an empty box. Read it with your preschooler and then get out your own box for him to play in!

11. Knuffle Bunny is one of my favorite children’s books. EVER. It’s by Mo Willems (of course) and is filled with Mo’s trademark humor that cracks up both adults and children. (Mr. Cowboy has a text-to-self connection with Mo’s experience in trying to understand his daughter, Trixie!) The best part is that it is a true story — I use it all the time as a mentor text when teaching lessons about writing personal narratives. The audio version and the DVD version are gems of their own, too. Mo does his own voice and his daughter Trixie does her own voice as well! Oh, and a tip: “Knuffle” is pronounced “Kuh-nuffle”. It’s made clear in the second book (also great), so don’t make the same mistake I did of mispronouncing it!

12. I Will Never Not Eat a Tomato – You might be familiar with the Charlie and Lola series on TV, but did you know it was inspired by a series of books? Lauren Child has some very cool illustrations that are a mix of cut paper, photographs and paintings and the stories of big brother Charlie and his funny little sister, Lola are just so sweet. This particular one is great for picky eaters! And you must read Charlie’s and Lola’s voices in British accents. You must!

Preschoolers are so fun and so capable of having deeper conversations around books. I love books that help them develop that skill, while catering to their silliness and growing sense of wonder and humor.

What are your favorite books for preschoolers?